Automatic fire-alarm.



M. FL HUMPHRIES.

AUTOMATIC FIRE ALARM.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 30,1915.

Y 1,242,552. Patented 0%. 9,1917.

2 Z9 0 I I L 9 \g Z6 5 E Z] MILTON F. HUMPHRIES, MORRIN, ALBERTA, CANADA.

AUTOIVIATIC FIRE-ALARM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

7 Patented Oct. 9, 1917.

Application filed June 30, 1915. Serial No. 37,400.

To all 'tU/LOm it may concern Beit known that I, MILTON F. HUMPH- Inns, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at Morrin, in the Province of AL berta and Dominion of Canada, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Fire-Alarms; and I do hereby declare the followin to be a full,

clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same. 7

The general object of this invention is to provide a cheap and effective temperature alarm that can be regulated to operate at predetermined temperatures; and to this end theinvention consists of a base having contact poles mounted thereon, which are in circuit with a bell or analogous alarming device, and a tube pivotally mounted on the base and having one end provided with a bridge piece, the said tube containing mercury which is adapted, when expanded, to cause the tube to rock in the direction of the contact poles so as to cause the bridge piece to contact with said poles to close the circuit to the bell, and means associated with the tube for regulating the latter so as to be set tooperate at a predetermined temperature.

lVith the above and other objects in view which will more fully appear from the embodiment of my invention of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part thereof, in which:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of my invention.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same, showing the pivoted tube partially in section.

Fig. 3 is a detailview of the contact poles, showing them in circuit with the battery and alarming device, and also showing the manner of bridging the contact pieces to close the circuit to the alarming device.

Referring to the drawing more in detail the numeral 1 designates a rectangular base portion adapted for attachment to any suitable support, and is provided adjacent one end with a pair of spaced contact poles 2 and 3, and adjacent its opposite end with a pair of spaced vertical uprights l and 5, the lower ends of said uprights 4: and 5 being provided with lateral extensions, as shown at 6, which are adapted to be attached to the base portion by means of the fastening elements 7.

Located between the uprights f and 5, is one end of a glass tube 8, the said end of the tube being provided with a collar 9, which closely embraces the tube, and which s provided with a pair of laterally extending trunnions 10 and 11, adapted to be received by openings formed in the upper ends of the respective uprights f and 5, as shown in Fig. 1, so as to allow the tube to have rocking, or vertical swinging movement, on the said uprights. The tube 8 is adapted to contain mercury, as shown at 1'2, and the pivoted end of the tube is terminally provided with an enlarged head 13 adapted to form a reservoir for the mercury. The tube 8 is provided with a graduation scale 1t, and slidable longitudinally on the tube, and over the graduation scale 14, is acollar formed of companion semicircular sections 15 and 16, the low-r ends of the sections being adapted to pivotally clamp therebetween a weight 17.

The upper ends of the poles 2 and 3, are provided with transverse openings therein, through which extend a pair of contact fingers 19 and 20, the finger 19 having one end connected to a conductor wire 21 in circuit with a source of electrical supply 22, and the finger 20 being connected with a conducting wire 2", which is in circuit with a bell 24C or other suitable alarming device, as shown in Fig. 3 of the drawing.

The tube 8 has the end opposite the one carrying the reservoir, provided with a collar 25, which encircles the said end of the tube 8, and which has depending therefrom the lug 26. The lug 26 has pivotal connection with an upstanding lug 27 carried by and immediately located on the rectangular shaped bridge-piece 28. The bridge-piece 28 is adapted to vertical swinging movement on the lug 26, and the said bridge piece is adapted, when the tube 8 is moved downwardly, to engage the fingers 19 and 20 so as to close the circuit for the alarm.

By virtue of pivoting the bridge-piece 28, in the manner shown, effective contact of the bridge-piece 28 with the contact fingers 19 and 20 will be assured, should the contact fingers get out of alinement with each other or otherwise distorted.

The operation of the device is as follows:

When the temperature in the room, or

other place wherein the alarming device is to be located, rises to a certain degree, so as to cause the mercury to flow from the reservoir 13 toward the end of the tube which carries the bridge-piece, the weight of the mercury will cause the tube to rock upon the trunnions 10 and 11, thereby causing the bridge-piece to contact with the contacting fingers 19 and 20 and close the circuit to the alarming device 24, as will be readily understood, By moving the collar, which, carries the weight 17, toward the pivoted end of the tube and positioning the same over a certain character in the graduation, scale 15, the tube will not be operated until the mercury passes the point at which the collar is set, owing to the increased weight at the pivoted end, If it is desired to operate the tube at a, lower temperature, the weight is moved toward the bridge carrying end of the tube, thereby lessening the weight at the pivoted endsofthe tube, so that a small portion of the mercury, in passing the pivotal point for the tube will cause the bridge carrying end to descend. The tube 8 can be set to be operated at any temperature desired, by placing the weight at the character which corresponds to the temperature at which it is desired to have the alarm operated.

From the foregoing description it will be seen. that I have-provided a very cheap and effective alarmoperating device that can be conveniently installed, and which can, be

regulated to be operated only at a predetermined temperature.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new is:

A circuit closer for an automatic fire alarm comprising a base, spaced upright elements mounted on the base, contact fingers carried by the upper ends of the uprights and included in a normally open alarm circuit, a mercury tube having one end pivotally connected to the base andhaving its oppositeend overlying the space between the upright elements and disposed above the contact fingers, said tube being adapted at a predetermined temperature to be rocked in the direction of the Contact MILTON F. HUMPHRIES. Witnesses:

THOMAS H. HICKS, JAMES A. LANE.

Copieaot this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing'the Commissioner of Patents Washington, D. C. 

